Mortal Kombat: Elder Realms
by Titen-Sxull
Summary: The Elder Gods have placed a barrier between Earthrealm and Outworld and the sorcerer Quan Chi is searching for a way around it. In the process he will unlock an ancient secret and a doorway into the realm of Nirn where the denizens of Tamriel are blissfully unaware. A cross-over between Mortal Kombat and the Elder Scrolls: Skyrim.
1. Chapter 1: The Realm of Dragons

CHAPTER ONE: The Realm of Dragons

The rain fell amidst the trees hitting hard and fast against their bark as the darkness of twilight deepened. Here in the shadows of these ancient living trees the sorcerer walked alone. He knew what he was looking for and despite the legendary nature of it he had every confidence that he would find it. He stopped for a moment beneath the branches of a gnarled ancient tree and removed from his satchel a piece of animal hide. Ink lines and shapes were stained onto this hide in ancient times long before the rise of the Emperor Shao Khan, in an age long ago forgotten. This cryptic map was one of few relics that had survived Khan's maddening desire to wipe out all those rulers and histories which had come before him.

The Living Forest hadn't always been as alive as it was now. The trees were said to be possessed, imbued with the spirits of the forests former inhabitants, the Atonians. All that was left of that ancient civilization were scattered artifacts and legends passed orally from Outworlder to Outworlder. The sorcerer, however, believed that the legends were true and that the Atonians had left behind far more than anyone had suspected.

Following the vague direction of the map and charting his steps well despite the rain and biting cold wind, the dark robed sorcerer pressed onward. The trees, their twisted bark hauntingly reminiscent of angry faces caused the wind to whisper with the words of forsaken spirits trapped in the densely packed magical energies of the eldest forest in all of Outworld. As the sorcerer trudged through the growing muck and gloom he found himself keenly aware of other whispers and shadows that seemed less than tree-like.

Soon the first signs of civilization greeted him and at last his hours of exploration and weeks of research did not seem wasted. A stonewall towering some thirty feet into the night sky and just slightly peaking above the shortest trees told of ancient civilization. Each stone was massive, likely weighing several tons and the area seemed strewn with ruinous rocks no doubt fallen off the wall reducing it from it's original impressive height. The sorcerer rolled his map and set it away safely in his satchel, from here on the wall would be his guide.

Sonya gestured for her fire team to remain in position and drew her pistol. Withholding her breath for fear of being detected she quietly reached into a pouch on her belt removing her suppressor before slowly screwing it onto the end of her weapon. The enemy were close, she could hear their shouting and the shuffling of feet far too nearby for her tastes. Crouching in the shadows she waited for the moment to strike watching as the shadows of two guards with AK-47s approached from the corridor beside the one she was in. Her fire team fell into defensive positions with their rifles lifted, two faced the rear while the other two -one standing, one kneeling- were facing her.

The first guard passed by without noticing a thing, the second however caught sight of her and her team. Sonya put a bullet in his throat and his skull before he could scream out a warning. She had the other guard in her sights before the first guard's corpse could even hit the ground. Down they both went hard onto the dirt of the underground tunnel. Signaling for the others to move up slowly Sonya shuffled out into the tunnel checking her corners before trying to identify the two men. She nodded to her team as they approached.

"Lin Kuei," she whispered to them, "I knew some of these bastards hadn't gone back to Outworld."

"Aren't the Lin Kuei our allies?" one of the soldiers asked, "I thought they turned against Shao Khan after the death of the original Sub-Zero."

"Allies or not Private Barnes they are not supposed to be here," Sonya replied loading her weapon, "All Outworlders were ordered to go back to their homeworld."

"So what are they doing here?" Erikson, another soldier, asked.

"Excavation by the looks of it," Sonya answered, "But why the hell a bunch of ninjas cryomancers would be doing archeology on Earth is anyone's guess and it's what we're going to find out... allies or not."

* * *

The city was as magnificent now as it must have been in ancient times long before Outworlders lived in fear of their own ruler. The sorcerer's feet tread over stones tens of thousands of years old if not older which had been placed along the streets by a people forgotten by history. Stone buildings of impressive size and shape lined the streets including several pyramids a shape not often seen amidst the architecture of Outworld, one far more common on Realms such as Earth. To the sorcerer this made perfect sense as the Atonians were said to travel from Realm to Realm spreading civilization and knowledge of the arcane to those who had not yet discovered it. The ambassadors to these new Realms were, as legend held, seen as gods by the inhabitants of other worlds.

At last the sorcerer came to the building he was looking for, itself built atop a massive pyramid. The stairs seemed to ascend forever but with a flick of his fingers and a booming incantation that seemed to penetrate even the roar of the thunder and the howl of the wind the sorcerer materialized at the top of the pyramid. Suddenly the shadows seemed to swarm around him and he felt the cold steel of a sword-tip against his spine as two other warriors moved to intercept him from the front.

"I have no time for games you-"

"Bite your tongue sorcerer," the warrior at his rear demanded emphasizing his point with a prod of his sword, "I assure you my blade is sharp."

"I wouldn't bet on it," the sorcerer chuckled, "It hasn't been used in thousands of years."

"Who are you to trespass here?" asked a seemingly ancient voice seemed to boom out nowhere.

"I am Quan Chi, chief sorcerer to the Emperor of this Realm. I am the right hand of Shao Khan!"

"We are the protectors of this City," the blades-man behind him revealed, "You shall not-"

Quan Chi leaped into action turning into a quick spin and unsheathing his boardsword. In one motion he readied his blade and spun it on his would-be captor. The sword would have eviscerated the city guard had he been an ordinary guard of flesh and blood, instead the blade passed through an ethereal mass of black smoke. Quan Chi spun back the other way taking out his second sword to swipe at the other two guards who, just as the first, were solid one moment and immaterial the next.

"I should have sensed your true nature from the moment I felt your presence," the elderly voice boomed with a crack of thunder, "Deceitful, wicked, power-hungry, murderous, treasonous, venomous."

The sorcerer deftly dodged a blade that would have spilled his intestines had it hit him, even with his quick maneuvering a thin line of blood was drawn across his pale white abdomen. With a sudden burst of anger he summoned a jade orb of destructive magic and sent it hurtling not toward where the warrior was but toward where it's black mass of smoke was rematerializing. The guard tried to dodge but even as it converted back into it's incorporeal form the magic-burst hit it dead on sending a shockwave of painful energy roiling throughout it like a bolt of lightning. It collapsed into a pile of ash.

"And what of your true nature," Quan Chi belted out avoiding another swipe of a sword, "Forsaken souls trapped here, for what, what are you protecting?"

"You will never find out sorcerer! You will die atop this pyramid!"

Quan Chi stabbed out one of his blades into the air and cried out to the heavens watching a swirling gray-green mist surround his sword. Down it chopped passing quickly through the materialized body of one of the guards and casting arcs of green lightning up and down the spirit-soldier's body causing it to die somewhere in the transition from man to mist. The last soldier rolled across the stones grabbing his fallen comrade's weapon and thrusting the blade forward. Quan Chi blocked both attacks and the frenzy of blind often defenseless attacks that followed sending the sound of ringing steel echoing throughout the Living Forest. The sorcerer began to realize that though the guard would never tire he most certainly would and he summoned a bolt of green lightning. To the sorcerer's surprise the guard dematerialized and sunk into the stone below emerging from below to grab at his ankles.

"Clever!" Quan Chi remarked with a laugh teleporting himself out of danger, "Perhaps you will even earn a place at my side in the Nether-Realm!"

The ghostly guard rose from the stone hissing like a demon and seized upon the sorcerer. Quan Chi felt the spirit writhing it's way into him fighting for dominance of his soul and control of his limbs causing him to convulse painfully. A few moments later Quan Chi grinned wide and wicked atop the pyramid as the energy of that now trapped soul coursed through him and arrived at the jade-jewel gem on his black ring. The ring had been a gift from Shang Tsung, a representation of their alliance, before his friend had been killed in Mortal Kombat by Earth's champion, Liu Kang. Shang Tsung was not gone of course, not fully, for that was the purpose of the ring, his essence, his soul, was tied to it. So long as the ring remained intact the Elder Gods could not take Tsung's soul for its righteous punishment.

With the soldier's dispatched Quan Chi removed his hood revealing his pale tattooed flesh and feeling the icy cold rain against his skin. He could hear the forest crying out, the souls trapped in those trees desperately wishing they could join the battle and stop him from learning the secret of the world they'd left behind. He snickered and laughed as he tried to push aside the great stone door to the building atop the pyramid. It was ornately carved and upon having tactile contact he could tell it had a magical lock. Studying the runes on the door he found himself at a loss and not at all in the mood to spend the months it would take him to learn the proper magical incantations to open so ancient and hearty a magical barrier. He closed his eyes and the ring on his finger began to glow bright green and then transition into white. Soon enough the sorcerer's eyes popped open and he pressed his hands to the door once more repeating the words that would open the lock.

The door slid with ease and the darkness beyond it was soon lit by magical torch-light which flickered to life along the walls and revealed the sorcerer what he had only dreamed of. The legendary Library of Aton, with scrolls, parchments and books stacked and stored on shelves as far as the eye could see. As he moved into the building however he could feel the presence of something other than himself and was not at all startled when an aged figure with a white beard nearly down to the floor was conjured before him.

"How can this be?" The elderly avatar inquired, now his voice had lost all of it's booming authority and seemed sorrowful.

"Your guard was of some assistance," Quan Chi replied with a grin staring down at his ring, "Lucky I decided to capture him instead of dispelling his soul and reducing him to ashes."

"You should not be here," the spirit scolded, "No one should, neither those with good or evil intent were ever meant to have the knowledge stored here."

"Then why store it?" Quan Chi asked with a puzzled expression beginning to walk down one of the seemingly endless aisles with books shelved and scrolls scattered in disarray at his feet, "Tell me spirit, what did your Masters know of moving from Realm to Realm unhindered?"

"Please, I am merely a guardian," the old man's soul pleaded.

"The guardians are already dead," Quan Chi said with assurance in his tone, "And their souls are passed from this plane thanks to me... you are a librarian, not a guard."

"Please, leave this place, I beg you!"

"I would prefer not to have to harm you," Quan Chi growled, "But you leave me no choice."

"NO!"

Quan Chi sucked in a deep breath and brought his hands together, a bright light formed at the center of his cupped hands growing and forcing his hands farther apart as it became a glowing sphere of boiling green energy with throbbing arcs of electricity swimming through it like serpents. Quan Chi then formed ropes of energy, tendrils to which the green ball was tethered. He threw the sphere then as the librarian tried in vain to dematerialize or at least get out of the way. The bolts of bright energy stung like fangs and dug into the spirit dragging him across the room and sapping the energy from his incorporeal form until at last Quan Chi sucked his life-force into his jade-jeweled ring.

"Resist as long as you can," Quan Chi said sinking into the librarian's consciousness now contained within his ring, "I will have all the secrets your soul can spill of this place, sooner or later."

* * *

Sonya Blade entered the burial chamber with a bad feeling in the pit of her stomach. They were concealed well enough, hidden in the shadows behind some boulders far above the active dig site below. Beneath her she could make out the figures of a dozen or so workers and the Lin Kuei warriors that were supervising them. Above it all however was the well known Lin Kuei soldier known Cyrax. Cyrax, unlike most of the Lin Kuei, had committed fully to the mad experiments his superiors were performing, experiments into the art of cybernetics and bionics that left Cyrax more machine than man. To her knowledge however Cyrax had defected to the side of Earth shortly after the realization that the true Sub-Zero had been replaced by one of Shao Khan's own lieutenants. What were he and the Lin Kuei still doing here on Earth, what were they doing digging in the Chinese wilderness no less?

"These are our roots brothers," she heard Cyrax calling as he leaped down from his perch to join the others, "The Lin Kuei originated not in Outworld but on Earth. Our order ,

was one of few privileged enough to know the secrets of how to move between the Realms, we were called by the gods of old, the Atonians, to Outworld, after our own dynasty betrayed us."

"This is some crazy shit," Barnes whispered, "Who the hell are the Atonians?"

"I'm not familiar with the name," Sonya said shaking her head.

"Now Shao Khan has betrayed us by placing an imposter in Sub-Zero's place in order to get us to conquer Earth. He is not worthy of our loyalty," Cyrax continued with his speech, "and he is not only unworthy of the throne he holds on Earth but of the one he holds in Outworld as well. When we find the portal buried here we will travel to Outworld my brothers and we will end his reign once and for all."

"He seems loyal enough Sonya," Barnes argued, "Sonya? Sonya?"

"Shut the fu-" Sonya started to command but before she could finish a spear-like chunk of ice passed over her head and buried itself into the cavern wall.

"Where the hell did that come from?" Barnes asked.

"Don't move," a female voice demanded and the fire team turned in unison to see a tall sexy female figure with piercing ice-colored eyes standing over them. Her hands seemed frozen over with a shimmering sheet of ice and at her side sat deadly enchanted Outworldian steel daggers.

"Frost," Sonya denoted holding up her hands in surrender and dropping her pistol.

* * *

Quan Chi was losing more than his patience, he felt he was losing his mind. The soul of the librarian was more powerful and far more resistant to the persuasion of the ring than he had anticipated. As he combed through the library thoughts flooded his mind, thoughts that were not his own, memories that had no connection to his life and emotions that were entirely out of place, even out of character. It was if the librarian had treated those other souls in the ring as an army to be organized against the mind of the sorcerer and despite his best efforts to regain control the mob of souls Quan Chi and Shang Tsung had trapped within the ring could not be placated.

Only blind anger and determination kept the sorcerer focused enough to continue his search for the secrets of the Atonians. That anger however was proving a double-edged sword as in his rage he was pushing down shelves, tearing scrolls that contained nothing of interest to pieces and stumbling over blocks of stone and piles of books in a frustrated frenzy. Here amidst the scrolls was the secret to allowing Shao Khan's armies back into Earth-Realm but more than that, the secret to the conquest of all the realms, realms unnumbered and perhaps even unguarded.

Driven nearly made the sorcerer nearly knocked a torch into the nearest shelves as he stumbled through row after row of tomes and volumes. The history of every dynasty of Outworld stretching back long before Shao Khan was here, even some of it extended to before the Atonians when Outworld was populated by unthinking reptilian beasts similar to those that had once lived on prehistoric Earth and those that still stalked the darker corners of the Nether-Realm and the densely packed unexplored jungles of Edenia.

He found himself barely able to think, and soon began pawing about with his hands trying to sense which tomes had any connection to magic. This led him to tomes about necromancy and cryomancy and pyromancy but there was nothing about interdimensional travel to be found here. In a fit of rage Quan Chi pushed the shelf over and fell to the ground clutching his skull and trying desperately to get control.

With titanic effort the sorcerer channeled the librarian's soul out of the ring struggling to keep it from overwhelming his own essence and spat it out from his very soul causing it to appear in a spiritually-amniotic green liquid. The librarian shook himself off but before the spirit could even regain his bearings Quan Chi was on him riddling the poor soul's body with dark green lightning and cackling as the rebellious librarian screamed in agony.

"One way or another my friend you will tell me the location of what I seek," Quan Chi laughed.

"You could spend centuries and never find the illumination you seek!" The librarian spat, "It was not meant for men of this Realm!"

"Stubborn bastard," Quan Chi remarked relenting his lightning attacks for a moment. In an epiphany of swirling thoughts the sorcerer ran backward locating the torch he had all but knocked loose earlier. As he'd suspected the torches were not at all lit by real fire but were a strangely ambient magic that simply created light. He loosened the torch-head with a smirk before pulling it downward and out and watching as part of the wall slid away revealing a set of stone stairs leading down.

"No! I will not let you!" The librarian shouted sprinting faster than any living thing could ever move but even at that speed the goodly spirit could not defeat the speed of light. An arc of green lightning caught it by the throat and with a few magic words and a little extra application of energy the librarian fell to the stone floor as ashes.

"Now we will see what knowledge no one should possess," Quan Chi said aloud with a smirk of supreme superiority on his pale face.

* * *

"They killed at least two of our clan," Frost informed her superior, Cyrax, as she presented the captive Sonya and her Fire Team of four, "There team were carrying enough explosives to collapse this cavern and kill every one of us. I suspect sabotage"

"Is this true?" Cyrax inquired in his ominous mechanical voice.

"Partly," Sonya admitted watching Cyrax's hand fall instinctively to his pulse-sword, "we killed two of your men, but we were here on a scout mission, not sabotage."

"Scouts? Then why did you kill two of my men?"

"Because they saw us, and they would not have hesitated to kill us," Sonya answered, "You know your clan are formidable Cyrax, you also know that Outworlder's are not allowed here on Earth. You were ordered back to Outworld, you disobeyed to dig here."

"You are wrong," Frost shouted back-slapping her icy hand across Sonya's face.

"Enough!" Cyrax demanded noting the expression on Sonya's face and way she held her body that told him she could break her bindings anytime she chose and was choosing to stay a captive for the time being.

"But sir, they are lying, what about the explosives!"

"C-4 is standard shit for our whole squad, every fire-team gets a chunk," Barnes answered.

"No one addressed you!"

"You did address me bitch, when you decided to strike my commanding officer!"

Frost snapped then diving toward Barnes and outstretching her hand and summoning out a spike of ice that stabbed into his abdomen. Sonya was moving then and within the blink of an eye was out of her bindings. She swept out Frost's legs before the ice-witch saw what was happening. Frost fell backward but caught herself on a torrent of ice and pushed herself up with its power shifting her shoulders and torso to avoid the punches Sonya had swinging her way. Out came Frost's long elegant legs kicking Sonya in the chest before pushing her away. Frost readied her ice and Sonya pulled a hidden pistol from her boot.

"STOP!" Cyrax cried in an artificially amplified voice that shook the stones over their heads.

"Sir?" Frost asked watching as Sonya dropped her weapon and nodded in Cyrax's direction.

"We are not in Earth Realm by choice Miss Blade," Cyrax explained as Frost at last dropped her arms idly to her sides and wandered off mumbling angrily to herself.

"You alright Barnes?" Sonya called to the injured soldier.

"Hurts like hell!"

"It barely broke the skin," Erikson reported contradicting Barnes as he inspected the fairly minor wound, "didn't even pierce the layer of fat."

"Fuck you pal," Barnes protested with a half-smile half-grimace getting to his feet with Erikson's help, "I'll be fine Sonya."

"You were saying?" Sonya said turning to Cyrax and gesturing for him to continue.

"After Earth won the tournament your government demanded that we return home. Our clan wanted nothing more than to comply," Cyrax continued waving his guards to leave the room as well, "But as part of the rules of the tournament the Elder Gods eventually placed a seal on the border between our two Realms to prevent Shao Khan from breaking the rules and coming to Earth Realm with an army. That seal closed before we could leave Earth Realm."

"This is fascinating and all," Barnes grumbled, "But what the hell does it have to do with ancient Lin Kuei ruins being beneath a Chinese Pyramid?"

"Barnes," Sonya scolded but Cyrax waved away her anger.

"Over the last eighteen months we have searched for a way back to Outworld, a way around the seal the Elder Gods have in place. That search led us to the discovery that the Lin Kuei were of Earth. We believe that they buried a portal here, a magical gate that might be exempt from the rules of the Elder Gods. So you see Miss Blade, we are on the same team."

"I believe you," Sonya nodded, "But you're still here illegally, I can only keep this place a secret for so long before Jax will come busting through these walls with every soldier at his disposal."

"I appreciate your discretion Miss Blade," Cyrax said, "and I hope to be long gone before Mister Briggs gets wind of what we're doing. When we have taken Outworld back from Shao Khan perhaps we will be free to return on better terms with your world."

"I hope so," Sonya said shaking Cyrax's cold robotic hand before departing with her more or less intact fire team in tow.

"You're letting them go?" Frost asked returning to Cyrax's side with her pride more than a little damaged as she watched Sonya vanish into the shadows of a distant tunnel, "They killed members of our clan, remember what Sub-Zero said to us when we were but children in the eyes of Lin Kuei! Clan is everything!"

"Making an enemy of Sonya is not at all wise for our clan," Cyrax argued, "You would do well to view our Master's words with a little more, perspective."

"Sir! Sir! Master Cyrax!" an excited worker cried rushing up to the cyborg and quickly dropping to one knee, "I'm sorry to interrupt but-"

"Out with it!" Frost demanded impatiently.

"I believe we've found it! I believe we've found the portal!"

* * *

Quan Chi turned around and looked up the stairs behind him. He sent a small probing light shimmering up those stairs watching it climb for what seemed like an eternity before the dot became infinitesimally small and then, finally, could no longer be sustained magically at such distance. Shaking his head in disbelief and believing himself more than a mile beneath the pyramid Quan Chi continued on down bottomless the stone stairs until his eyes came to a relieving and seemingly impossible site, the bottom.

He stepped from the stairs wiping the sweat from his brow and scanning the room for somewhere to sit. Despite being in top physical condition even the sorcerer, after his thirteen mile hike into the wilderness, his battle atop the pyramid, and his journey down the labyrinthine stairs, he was nearly exhausted. Before his eyes could focus upon any ancient stone benches however the books caught his attention first. Placed upon pedestals and glowing with an otherworldly light that seemed so out-of-place this far down he was drawn to them with an unyielding temptation.

At last he had found it, the Library of Aton, the knowledge of those would-be gods who has mastered traveling between the realms. He ran his fingers over the cover of the first book finding it utterly immaculate without even a thin layer of dust after eons of sitting here in this stone chamber. The cover was emblazoned with a raised dragon-like symbol that accented the intriguing title.

"The Book of the Dragonborn," Quan Chi read aloud into the empty room, "What secrets do you hold for me?"

The other titles seemed equally promising, "Ruminations on the Elder Scrolls," and finally Quan Chi found one that seemed written in the ancient tongue of the Atonians, a language long dead, but he knew of one lost-soul still in his possession that might shed some light on what lie within this tome, with a wicked smirk the sorcerer began to read "The Elder Realms – Of Portals and Gods, chapter one – Nirn, Realm of Dragons."


	2. Chapter 2: Hunters and Heroes

**Chapter Two: Hunters and Heroes**

The glint of a steel arrow caught the glow of the moons spinning through the air before burying it's way into the bandit guard. Atop a the precipice the now skewered bandit let out a brief shriek, one silenced almost immediately by a second arrow, this one tearing into his throat. The bandit's body fell limp against the wooden rail of his look-out tower. Despite the speed of the second arrow the bandits remaining in the camp had heard their comrade call out and were immediately on the defensive. Several scouts headed out in search of the attacker who lurked in the shadows.

To the hunter, crouched in the branches of a nearby tree, it seemed that these bandits might actually put up a fight. A smile met his elven lips as he leaped from the tree and hit the snow-covered ground running. For most navigating the tangled branches, stones and ice on the ground would have proved difficult even at a fairly slow pace but for a Bosmer the twisted forests of Skyrim were not all that different from the endless Cyprus and mangrove swamps of his native Valenwood.

The bandits were clueless to his position and even more so they were not making secrets of their own. Their feet crunched loudly into the snow despite their lightly armored bodies and they continuously called to each other to give updates on the search. Several of them even carried torches. Believing he had overestimated their ability the hunter bobbed and weaved between the trees his feet touching the ground barely long enough to leave imprints in the snow as he neared his first target. He slipped his bow down from his shoulder and quivered and arrow never losing speed as he threaded the arrow flawlessly between the trunks of a dozen trees between him and his enemy. Down the bandit went gripping at the wound in his chest and trying with breathless lungs to cry for help. The only help he received was help in dying from an elven dagger to the throat.

The bandits were on to him when their companion did not answer their calls and now and the elven hunter found himself in the sights of a bandit sniper. Luckily for him the barbaric orc behind the bow wasn't a very good shot, very lucky the wood-elf realized as an off-target ebony arrow hit a tree some distance behind him sending sparks of scorching electricity into the bark. One shot from that bow would likely end his little raid once and for all.

The orc called out his position and despite the hunter's best attempts to lose line-of-sight amidst the trees the pursuit was still coming. With a smirk emerging on his lips the hunter turned to fight rather than becoming the prey himself. He slipped toward the nearest bandits, two Nords in nothing but fur armor wielding steel swords. The first was dead before he could even draw that steel sword from it's sheath, the second managed to bat aside the elven dagger and stab in toward the elf with his sword. Now the Bosmer reached behind him and brought out his favorite weapon, a steel warhammer with a very special enchantment. He blocked the sword and used his impressive strength to drive the bandit back before swinging the hammer up over his head with bone-crushing force. The bandit scurried out of the way just in time and stabbed in nervously with his blade but the elf merely dodged backward getting just enough distance to take another swing with the massive hammer.

The hammer connected this time shattering the bandit's left arm and likely cracking a rib and imparting with it burning agony like the sting of some sinister poison, the hammer's lunar enchantment active only when the moons were out above Mundus. Reeling from the pain the bandit could barely swing his sword but he managed to cleave a fairly close swath over the head of his Bosmer opponent. The hammer came in with another, this time final, swing bashing aside the unprotected skull of the Nordic bandit leaving him dead on the blood-stained snow.

The hunter had little time to gloat over his victory, the orc was moving toward him now and in what looked like full heavy Iron Armor, along with a female Breton who appeared to be hurling ice spikes in his direction. Preferring not to be skewered the hunter took the trees and pulled out his bow hoping his accuracy was better than that of the would-be wizard the bandits had with them. He readied a steel projectile and took aim as the wizard walked into the tangle of trees. Her eyes met his for a moment, just before her eye met his arrow. Screaming in horrific agony she fell to the ground but to his amazement she didn't bleed-out and instead, with both hands glowing a soothing golden color, began to heal herself magically.

Below him the orc slammed into the trunk of the tree causing the entire thing to sway.

"Get down here and fight coward!" the orc growled.

An ice spike nearly split his skull in two forcing him from his perch. By some miracle the Breton wizard was not only alive but was apparently capable of better aim with one eye than she was with two. It mattered little for as the hunter leapt from one tree to another he readied a second arrow, this one split apart the next ice spike shattering it into vapor before falling with no momentum to the snow below. The third arrow however buried itself in her chest. With both hands glowing she desperately tried to stem the flow of blood but to no avail this time.

"Divines damn you!" the orc shouted rushing over to her in a strange show of sympathy, he cradled her as she died in his arms.

Feeling an uncommon pang of guilt the hunter dropped from the tree wanting to offer his final opponent a fair fight.

"They were like brothers and sisters to me," the orc solemnly remarked as he laid his fallen friend's lifeless body back down in the snow.

"Thieves," the Bosmer replied, "thieves who stole from people very dear to me."

"All those dear to me are dead," the orc said dropping his weapon to the ground below, "I used to be someone. I used to be an adventurer like you."

"Wait a minute," the elf said with an expression of surprise and recognition burning on his face, "I know you, I mean I've seen you, everyone in all of Tamriel knows who you are. You're the Dragonborn!"

* * *

Kano felt the air growing thick around him, dancing tendrils of energy built a web between the orifice's of the strange stone wheel Quan Chi had built. The intricate interlacing of magical energy came together in a single point, a singularity that soon began to spiral and swirl around itself. Endlessly tumbling the energy soon grew outward forming what could only be described to a simple-minded man like Kano as a doorway. The Black Dragon member looked to Quan Chi, then at the portal and then back to the pale sorcerer with an amazed expression.

"How can you be sure it's safe?" Kano asked.

"The texts were quite clear on exactly what needed to be done," Quan Chi replied, "The stone wheel itself was already constructed by the Atonians, I merely had to restore some of the worn away runes. What we are looking at, my Earthling friend, is a portal to a Realm that neither of our worlds even knew existed. From what I've read it is a world of magic and monsters, a world worthy of being conquered by men like us."

"And Shao Khan, what does the Emperor think of this discovery?" Kano asked reaching for the glowing rip in space-time as if he was going to touch it.

"Shao Khan does not know," Quan Chi said and when Kano's expression was one of confusion he clarified, "Shao Khan does not NEED to know."

"If there is a new realm the Emperor will want to know," Kano started but the look in Quan Chi's eyes told him to stop, "I see... then what would you have me do?"

"Gather the Tarkatans, and what members of the Black Dragon you can, and Kano, I want scouts, not brutes."

"I'll see what I can do Lord Quan Chi."

As Kano left the room Quan Chi turned to the Portal with lusting eyes and then turned to the corner of the room. The wall seemed to move for a moment but soon the figure of a reptilian fighter stood in full sight.

"Reptile," Quan Chi acknowledged not at all surprised to see Shang-Tsung's former acolyte there, "I assume you heard the entire conversation."

"That fool will no doubt head right for the Emperor's chamber," Reptile hissed lifting his clawed hands in front of the portal only to find himself unable to cloak in front of it.

"I'm not so sure, Kano is dumb to be sure, but he's been loyal enough," Quan Chi tossed the ninja a bag of coins, "See to it that he is loyal to us and make sure he doesn't know you are following him."

"That will be simple," Reptile hissed making himself all-but-invisible before exiting the chamber.

* * *

Kung Lao watched his fellow Shaolin Monk Liu Kang go through a complex and yet elegantly simple kata. As Liu's limbs twisted, turned, struck and reacted to an invisible imaginary opponent the warrior's chi grew stronger, his energy channeled like lightning through a steel rod. When Liu Kang finally pushed his hands forward the chi became visible manifesting itself in a torrential outburst of golden-orange flame that would have devoured anything in it's path had it not struck the stone wall in front of them.

"You see Kung Lao, it is just that simple," Liu instructed as Kung Lao took up position to attempt the move himself.

"Maybe for you," Kung Lao complained.

"Clear your mind of such doubts," Liu advised without anger or frustration in his voice, "Try again, focus."

Kung Lao wanted to believe that powers similar to those Liu possessed were available to all Shaolin with proper training and discipline but the more he attempted to summon the fire the more he began to suspect that it was something special within Liu Kang alone that allowed him this ability. Kung Lao cleared his mind to the best of his ability and began to repeat the kata as Liu Kang had repeatedly showed him. His strikes were precise, his blocks graceful, his chi flowing like a powerful river from his center and into his limbs. For a moment the proud Shaolin warrior believed that this time he had unlocked the secret but as his hands came forward to project fire he once again felt the sting of disappointment.

"Not even heat distortion," Lao complained shaking his head.

"It is not for lack of effort," Liu Kang reassured him with a friendly slap on the back, "nor for lack of energy."

"It is for lack of being Liu Kang," Kung Lao agreed with a nod losing his dour expression and cracking a smile for a moment.

"You are still a better swordsman than me," Liu Kang mentioned attempting to cheer him up.

The two warriors exchanged glances for a moment before Kung Lao's solemn expression broke at last in laughter. As the two laughed they both became accutely aware of a change in the air. The ground began to shake around them and an earth-shattering shout resounded in the room passing through walls, floors, ceilings and seeming to pierce reality itself.

"DOVAHKIIN!"

The two warriors stood quietly for a moment before looking at one another in joint confusion. The voice seemed to transcend reality itself and Liu Kang felt a burning within his soul that he could not explain. He rushed up the stairs and out of the building expecting to see the other monks and warriors equally perplexed but none of them seemed at all aware of the voice or the shaking that had preceded it.

"You heard it too right?" Liu asked now the one in need of reassurance.

"Dovahkiin," Kung Lao nodded, "Whatever that means."

"We must speak to Lord Raiden."

* * *

"I heard it too," the wood elf said searching the skies of the source of the voice, "Dovahkiin, what does that mean?"

"In the ancient tongue of dragons it means Dragonborn," the orc explained, "It is the call of the Greybeards, the ancient monks who know the Way of the Voice, they are summoning me."

"But then why did I hear it?" the elf inquired curiously as the Dragonborn gathered his things.

"You were close enough," the orc shrugged.

"Or maybe I'm the next Dragonborn," the wood-elf suggested drawing a loud guttaral scoff from his former enemy.

"What is your name Bosmer?"

"Telios," the elf answered, "Telios the Hunter most call me. What of you? Do you have a name beyond Dragonborn?"

"My name died long ago, long before I became the Dragonborn" the orc explained cryptically, "When I was younger I spent years in orcish and human prisons, I became known as Prisoner 1138. To the Thalmor I was known as Hellok, the accursed one, some character from their myths."

"And yet here you are, the greatest hero in all of Skyrim, nay in all of Tamriel," Telios boasted but he was cut by the orc's angry glare.

"I am a pariah," the orc explained, "I should have never joined the Legion, defeating the rebellion only opened the door to the Dominion even wider. It doesn't matter now, we have to go see the Greybeards."

"We? We?" Telios echoed with confusion on his elven face, "A moment ago we were mortal enemies!"

"A moment ago I had my own troop of loyal warriors," the Dragonborn reminded, "Unless you'd like to join them I suggest you ready your things for the journey to High Hrothgar, it will be a long climb."

Telios felt another pang of guilt as the Dragonborn stood and began gathering his things for the journey. The Hunter knew these bandits only by their petty theft from his village, they were one of two local competing tribes of bandits who ransacked his village on a semi-annual basis to scavenge what they could. The first bandit clan had been hunted down by the Empire after a few far-too-risky raids against Imperial supply lines got them noticed but this clan had lurked in the shadows striking at only the right times and leaving the village just prosperous enough to steal from. Despite the fact that he was looking at a true parasite on the flesh of the Hold Telios also felt he owed a debt to the orc for killing his friends.

The Hunter was no stranger to bandit clans, as a youth he'd been a pick-pocket for a small clan of his fellow Bosmer that cut out a living in Skyrim only by stealing. Gaining the acceptance of Nords was no easy task even for the mer who looked almost entirely human and so Telios could imagine that for an orc it was made even harder. Telios stood and gathered his things, recovering what arrows he could delicately so as not to disrespect the fallen comrades of the Dragonborn, even if they were just thieves.

To his amazement the Dragonborn's weapons and armor seemed for the most part very mundane. The bandits had a makeshift forge set up but it was barely functional and many of the steel and iron weapons laying about were of fairly crude quality. The orc's weapons were of considerably better construction from what he could glean just by looking at them but they didn't appear enchanted or all that special, and the set of iron armor he wore was much the same, ordinary. The armor was sturdy and well-made to be sure, it would offer a great deal of protection and was a complete set but Telios had always imagined the legendary Dragonborn to have weapons imbued with the powers of the divines themselves, not the sort of weapons any decent smith or weapons-dealer would have for sale or the sort of armor any city guard could afford on his meager salary.

Due to his heavy armor the Dragonborn liked to travel light and within only a few minutes of preparation he had his bag packed and thrown over his strong orcish shoulder. Telios looked up at him and noticed a gleam of adventure in the orc's eyes that had not been there before.

"It has been a long time since I have had any adventures," the orc proclaimed, "I am saddened that these are the circumstances... that my friends are dead... but the throat of the world has called to me elf," Hellok paused for a moment and glowered at the wood-elf closely and for a moment Telios felt as if the orc would suddenly spring at him in a fit of berserker rage but then the orc's eyes softened a bit, "Do you have what you need for the journey?"

"Will you allow me to get word back to my village?" Telios asked, "They will want to know what happened, where I am going."

"They will find this place," the Dragonborn predicted, "They will find my dead comrades, leave them a message here, if you wish."

"But I have friends," the wood-elf protested, "A girl!"

"So did I," Hellok, the accursed one, whispered ominously, "I know we stole from you elf, but we did not murder any of you did we? We did not seek you out to kill! We may have been carrion-birds, scavengers, leeches upon your prosperity, but when we moved it was with stealth and commotion as a weapon, it was with fear and misdirection! Make no mistake that you are the aggressor here Hunter!"

Telios wasn't sure he agreed with the rationalization, after all what he had done was to protect his village's property and by extension their livelihoods. They weren't exactly well-to-do, they were living off the land the hard, tedious and tenuous way that so many in Skyrim had to. What little surplus they had always seemed to fall into the hands of the bandits. Furthermore the bandits had killed, though only two villagers in the last three years and only when openly engaged in combat with the villagers in question. Despite his belief that he was morally justified in hunting the bandits down Telios did feel compassion, even guilt, at having robbed the Dragonborn of friends. Perhaps it was some twisted admiration for the legends that surrounded the Dragonborn, or some belief that the shell of an orc he saw before him could be salvaged, but Telios agreed to leave a message for his village there in the camp and depart with the Dragonborn at the break of dawn.

* * *

Liu Kang meditated patiently in the temple surrounded by the sounds of the rushing wind and the endless pounding of the water against the rocks below. The sanctuary here was hidden, shrouded behind the torrential mists of an ancient waterfall. Legends in the area said that the falls were once the mouth of a great dragon who rebelled against the gods. The gods punished the dragon by pouring water endlessly over his mouth until even the immortal serpent was eroded away by the waters, leaving only its open mouth, the cave in which the sanctuary was built. In a sense it was an odd place for a shrine to the Thunder-god Raiden, secluded as it was behind a waterfall far from the thunderous clouds that gave the god his strength.

Kung Lao stood behind Liu Kang trying to keep his eyes closed in reverence but reverence was hard for one as strong-willed and hard-headed as Kung Lao. Despite his disciplined training as a Shaolin warrior he still found it difficult to hold still as Liu went through his mantras and bowed before the burning incense at the feet of Raiden's statue. Something changed in the air then that caused even the impatient Kung Lao to bow his head in respect, a rush, a feeling of energy that began to sweep around them toward the statue. Kung Lao felt a burning sensation run across his skin and into the brim of his hat, he cautiously opened his eyes watching arcs of blue electricity sweeping across his steel-brimmed hat before joining in with dozens of others that soon coalesced into the form of Raiden.

"I'd forgotten about this place," Raiden said taking heed of his surroundings, "hard to get to even for a god."

"Raiden," Liu Kang spoke and despite his reverence for the deity he couldn't help but smile at seeing an old friend. Raiden offered the warrior a hand and helped him up before the two bowed in solemn respect before bursting into laughter and embracing warmly, "It is good to see you Lord Raiden."

"And you as well," Raiden concurred with an uncharacteristic grin, "It is not easy getting away from the other gods these days, they tell me that I visit the Earth far too often... not often enough if you ask me. Tell me Liu, what is it that troubles you? I know you did not summon me here merely to reminisce old friend."

"No," Liu nodded, "I have been feeling quite strange Lord Raiden, as if my spirit is torn between two worlds."

"There is light and darkness at war in us all," Raiden prescribed.

"This is different," Liu shook his head adamantly, "I have heard voices, they call to me in a language I do not understand, yet I swear I have heard before."

"How do you know that it is you they are calling?" Raiden asked looking to Kung Lao and noting the concern and impatience on the young warrior's face.

"Only those near to me can hear them," Liu elaborated, "Kung Lao has heard them, and another boy in my village, they are directed at me, I have no doubt."

"The voices say Dovahkiin," Kung Lao spilled suddenly breaking his silence, "Do you know what it means! Do you know what's happening to my friend? To me?"

"Kung Lao!" Liu started to scold but Raiden held out a hand to stop him.

"It is alright," Raiden said, "He is just concerned for you. When did these voices begin?"

"I heard them twice yesterday, once this morning as we scaled the falls," Liu answered in a hushed tone hoping to keep Kung Lao calm.

"I believe Shao Khan is behind it!" Kung Lao declared though more quietly this time, "He seeks revenge on my friend for killing that dog Shang Tsung!"

"Perhaps," Raiden acknowledged, though his expression betrayed that he had serious doubts about Shao Khan's involvement in this, "I will go into the inner-most sanctum of this temple and learn what I can from the Elder Gods, it will be quicker than returning to the heavenly realms myself... but it will still take time. Will you remain here or shall I meet you elsewhere?"

"You mean we have to wait to gain our answers," Kung Lao began complaining but he contained himself, remembering that he was in the presence of a god, and lowered his head in a slight bow, "I'm sorry, I know you want to help."

"We will meet you in the village below," Liu responded with a bow, "We are going to have a visitor there later tonight."

"Who?" Raiden asked with a curious grin.

"Let's just say he's bringing a film crew."

* * *

"Is the Portal stable?" Cyrax asked one of the scientists who looked toward the cyborg with a mix of confusion and fear, "Well?"

"Master," the Lin Kuei scientist began in a mewling tone, "We've never seen anything like this. We are used to cybernetics, not quantum tunnels."

"Fine," the cyborg replied impatiently, "I will test it myself."

"You don't mean that you're going in!"

"Of course not!" Cyrax replied in his mechanical tone, he lifted the scientist from the ground and hurled the man into the glowing portal watching as steam and green misty tendrils emanated from it as the man's body quite slowly began to dissipate into the dimensional tear. At first the man screamed but soon the screaming faded.

"Please Cyrax," Frost pleaded, "You must be patient, the wheel has only just been restored, it's a miracle we even found it at all."

"If it cannot get us back to Outworld it is useless!" The cyborg growled in his cybernetic voice.

"Don't be so small minded," Frost scolded at the risk of incurring his anger further, "It is still an incredible device, even if it leads to realms other than Outworld, and it could still be quite useful."

Both of them turned toward the portal now. There was something on the other side, deep rumbling and the sounds of hissing machinery coiling together, gears turning like some massive clockwork was just on the other side of the stone wheel. The glowing portal produced a globule of dark-green energy than shifted colors as it emerged fully before finally popping like an amniotic sack. Out fell the lifeless body of the scientist. His wounds were strange, cut marks as if a massive blade had cleaved into him. Cyrax turned toward the portal wondering what might have made those wounds but moments later a massive steel fist of polished bronze reached through the opening and stabbed forward with a massive blade that seemed built into it.

"Shut it down!" Cyrax demanded as scientists skirted around the portal trying to disengage the machines that had made it work, "Shut it down NOW!"

The cyborg exhaled exhaust with relief in his bio-mechanical mind as the singularity collapsed in on itself severing the arm of the mechanical monster at the elbow and leaving what was left of it in whatever world it had come from. Despite the close call Cyrax now saw the point that Frost was making. This portal had brought them into contact with some machine-weapon, the sort that might easily sway the other Lin Kuei to leave Shao Khan's forces and help in the fight against the Empire, if it could be reprogrammed or perhaps even reasoned with. With dreams of conquest, of a free Outworld under the control of the Lin Kuei, he ordered a group of warriors to prepare for the inevitable, the expedition into the other world.

* * *

Telios had lived in Skyrim for years and was used to the icy winters that hit the region near Falkreath where his village was located but the wood-elf was not used to the frigid constant cold of the mountains. The wind was unrelenting here stealing away moisture and making even the best tents essentially useless. The hunter found himself tiring quickly, forcing himself against the wind as he tried to keep pace up the thousands of stairs that would lead to the summit. This was a pilgrimage that some people in Tamriel waited lifetimes to make and yet Telios firmly believed that he could have easily died a happy man having never laid eyes on those steps.

It'd taken two days of travel just to reach the base of the mountain, their speed hampered by several attacks by Frostbite Spiders, a more and more common sight even near the more beaten and well-traveled paths of Skyrim. The two talked very little though the hunter preferred to keep it that way afraid that he would inadvertently cause the orc to grow angry and kill him. Telios wasn't sure just how great of a warrior the Dragonborn actually was, after all the orc was hardly what he'd expected of so legendary and supposedly noble a warrior but he also wasn't very keen on finding out. So in silence he pushed his body to its limit in the climb up the steep stone stairs.

The third day was fast coming to a close, it was already dark but the light of the moons was guiding them quite nicely. The good thing about being merfolk was the enhanced ability to see in the dark, a trait that Dark Elves had in the highest supply but that even orcs still retained to some extent. Now the clouds were looming, obscuring the moonlight that had aided their path and leaving even the sharp-eyed Bosmer essentially blind this far in the wilderness. Attempts to get a torch going were fruitless, the whipping wind and thin air making it impossible to keep the torch alive for more than a few minutes at a time. Finally they came to a cave where they might be able to find some rest.

"At last!" Telios exclaimed breaking several hours of silence and slumping onto the ground just inside the cave, "I thought that damned wind would be the death of me!"

"Quiet," the orc whispered stopping low to the ground and inspecting what Telios at first believed was a rock but then recognized for what it was, scat, "we're not alone."

"And that's no spider-scat, what are we dealing with Hellok?" Telios acknowledged readying his elvish bow, a gift from a Dark Elf he'd once known in an all but forgotten era of his life.

"Frost Troll," the orc replied letting his warm fur cloak, made of animal hides, fall away and fitting on his horned iron helm, "and judging by the droppings he's still home."

"We're going after it?" Telios asked seeing that flare for adventure in the Dragonborn's eyes again.

"What's the matter elf?" the Dragonborn asked with a toothy grin, "I thought you were a hunter."


	3. Chapter 3: Portals

Chapter Three: Portals

Kano felt a strange sensation wash over him as he stepped out of the portal. It was dark, too dark for ordinary human eyes to see, but luckily for Kano only one of his eyes was ordinary. His cybernetic eye could see perfectly even in near-total darkness. He turned in each direction, the walls were worked, dug, but in considerable disrepair. They were decorated with all sorts of carvings, faded paints and dyes surrounded them as if the chamber had not been inhabited in eons. The air was frigid and stale, almost unmoving... almost. There was an ever-so-gentle breeze coming down the corridor and as soon as the entire team had materialized through the portal Kano had them light up a torch and head in that direction.

Quan Chi had insisted that their expedition team dress in medieval style clothing and carry with them only what technology they absolutely couldn't live without. Kano hated the idea of going into a strange place without at least a pistol at his side but he trusted that Quan Chi knew what he was doing. As always he had his dual butterfly knives with him as well, for close encounters. Kano had chosen a team of six for the initial survey, two of them Black Dragon warriors, three of them Outworlders.

Along with those Quan Chi had sent one of his own, a young woman named Jie Mai who served as the sorcerer's apprentice. Mai's family had once been of noble blood before the rise of Shao Khan. Her Father had challenged Shang Tsung and lost but rather than take his soul Shang Tsung offered a different trade... his daughter. Jie Mai had convinced her father to go through with the trade. When Tsung was killed by Liu Kang in the tournament she was given the chance to go free, a rare merciful offer from the Emperor, she chose to stay and serve Quan Chi. Kano resented the woman though for despite her youth Quan Chi had put her in charge of the expedition. He would lead the way of course and be in charge of security but Quan Chi had made it absolutely clear that she had the last word on any and all decisions she saw fit to make.

Kano followed the gentle wind as best he could through what had become a labyrinth of twisting corridors and tunnels before finally they reached what seemed to be a main hub. The large stone chamber had several carved faces each depicting an animal of one sort or another, on the other side of the chamber sat three stone pillars bearing the same beastly symbols.

"Strange art," Kano remarked reaching for one of the pillars.

"I wouldn't," Mai advised with a stern shake of her head.

"Whale, snake, eagle," one of the Outworlders identified the symbols, "they worshipped these animals?"

"Underground?" Mai asked him sarcastically, "It's a lock combination, it appears to have a trap mechanism."

"Right," Kano said with an expression of realization, he reached for the pillar again and this time Mai didn't stop him, "Whale, snake, eagle."

"Now the chain," Mai directed pointing her torch in the direction of a rusted ancient chain hanging from the mouth of another carving.

Kano reached up and grabbed the chain pulling down with considerable force. The stale air of the chamber was filled with the resounding sound of a steel gate being lifted as one of the doors ahead of them drew up into the frame. Kano felt a wave of relief as he waved for the group to follow through the door. Luckily just on the other side of the door and down a few narrow corridors was the exit. Kano threw open the black stone portal, which was half off its hinges and hanging ajar, and took a deep breath of icy chilled air feeling his feet crunch against snow and ice.

Somehow it was even colder outside than it had been in underground but Kano didn't care. The sun was out. He set his eyes on the horizon noticing the distant silhouette of structures, clearly buildings of some kind. He zoomed in with his bionic eye to see that the village was inhabited and was built on the icy shoreline. Here he was in a new realm, a world that knew nothing of the Black Dragon clan, a world that knew nothing of Shao Khan or Earth-Realm, a world that would soon learn of Kano.

* * *

The Dragonborn knew he was getting close, he could smell it. He knew that he wasn't likely to sneak up on the troll, after all he was a good two-hundred and thirty of muscular orc fitted up in heavy iron armor, but he also knew he had the creature cornered. Admittedly he and his elf companion were the transgressors here, trespassing on the troll's territory but it would be better to deal with the troll now rather than let it throttle them in their sleep. Hellok, the accursed one, as the high elves had called him, drew his steel sword as the hulking form came just barely into view shrouded almost completely in the deep shadows the cave provided.

With a gentle triple tap on the snow the orc signaled to let the hunt begin and then charged with a roar that, had they been fighting a more intelligent opponent, would have caused more than a small dose of terror. By the time he had closed the distance three steel arrows had burrowed into the troll's frosty flesh. The troll was outraged more than injured and turned to face the orc with a snarl and an out-stretched arm that swung just a tiny bit too high. The orc swept his sword under that arm cutting at the chest of the creature before moving backward just in time to avoid the frost troll's angry fists. Three more arrows moved in, but only two hit the now moving irate target, one in the arm, another in the abdomen.

The troll let out a horrific screech of pain blended with absolute passionate rage to protect itself and it's home. The Dragonborn stabbed in with his sword piercing the troll right through but missing the spine and nerves. Before he could recover the blade the troll's arm came out sending the heavily armored orc stumbling backward. A second punch resounding against the iron armor he wore over his torso. Hellok managed to get his shield up for the last of the troll's swings but it did little good and the orc was sent smashing into the icy wall of the cave, his life saved only by the fact he was wearing his helmet.

"Lead him outside!" Telios cried as the orc regained his composure, "I have an idea!"

The Dragonborn wasn't sure he was finished fighting the troll, in fact the orc thought he could take the beast one on one but now wasn't the time for the bravado of a younger warrior, now it was time to rely on his wits and his wits told him to listen to the elf and get the hell out of the troll's way. The orc served as troll-bait as the bleeding but not badly injured troll surged after him. Several times he only just managed to barely get out of the way letting the troll's fists slam uselessly against the walls of the cave.

As the orc came rushing out of the mouth of the cave the troll came with him. Out swung a steel-warhammer which struck the troll with an incredible crunching sound that soon became the crackle of fire. The frost troll let out a yelp that seemed entirely out of place for a creature of its strength and size as it fell to the snow in a desperate attempt to put out the flames that the lunar burn enchantment was bestowing to it. The Dragonborn smiled at the resourcefulness of the elf and leaped in cutting and slicing at the troll as it slowly put out each and every patch of fire. Covered in a thousand cuts, scorched and in agony, and frost troll tried in vain to swing out at it's opponents but soon found it's throat cut out by the swing of a steel sword. As if to add insult to deadly injury the last thing it felt was the burn of fire and the swing of a hammer,

"That enchantment wouldn't have worked inside the cave?" Hellok asked wiping his blade clean of troll blood.

"Not sure," Telios admitted heading back toward the mouth of the cave, "best not to chance it... what if he has friends?"

"Trolls can't stand the smell of their own dead," Hellok explained back in the relative safety and warmth of the cave, "We should be safe as long as the stink lasts."

"Lovely," Telios said holding his nose to denote the seriousness of the foul stench but he soon realized the Dragonborn was lost somewhere in thought, "You okay? You're not injured are you?"

"No," the orc replied flatly, "my head is still ringing though..."

"Better get some rest then," Telios advised warming himself by the fire.

The Dragonborn lay down on the icy stone floor and pulled his cloak around him. There had been a time not too long ago when he could have stood his ground against two frost trolls and thought little of the experience. There was a time when his armor was strong enough to withstand the fiery tongue of the dragons, when he could literally stand in the fire plume as it escaped their ancient lungs and not feel the slightest bite. Now his armor was dented iron that would've melted straight to his skin if he had faced a dragon. He had lost that all long ago but for some reason it had not truly bothered him until now. In his time with the bandit clan he'd never once felt like he was in true danger from any of the foes they faced or folks they'd stolen from, until Telios had come and taken them apart piece by piece. Now he was exposed to the elements with a companion that seemed to only be staying with him out of a mix of guilt and being starstruck. As he drifted to sleep he wondered if the elf would even be there when he awoke, or perhaps he would never wake, or perhaps he'd wake with a blade to his throat... or perhaps...

* * *

"Did you miss me Liu?" a familiar voice asked from behind a set of expensive sunglasses and some even more expensive plastic surgery. Behind the familiar face stood dozens of cameras flashing and microphones probing in.

"Johnny," Liu denoted offering the man a respectful bow, "It's been a while my friend."

"Too long," Johnny Cage replied patting the man on the back and waving off the camera crew and media dismissively, "I wish I could say I'm just here for a little R&R."

"R&R?" Liu asked, "I thought you were here to shoot your movie."

"That too," Johnny nodded, "But really I'm here to pass on a message."

"A message from whom?" A third voice interjected, and both of them turned to see Lord Raiden materialize before them.

"Raiden," Johnny acknowledged shielding his eyes, "even the gods want my autograph these days."

"The message?" Liu Kang reminded.

"Right, right," Cage recalled, "It's from Sonya. She didn't want to reach you directly, it'd seem too suspicious, and she's trying to keep this a secret from her superiors."

"Keep what a secret Johnny?" Liu asked gesturing for him to get to the point.

"Apparently Cyrax and some of the other Lin Kuei haven't gone back to Outworld, she says they're digging right here, in China."

"Digging for what?" A fourth voice, this time Kung Lao's, entered the conversation.

"Some kind of portal apparently," Johnny answered, "A way to get around the Elder God's barrier. Supposedly they found ruins beneath a pyramid that prove the Lin Kuei had ancestors that go back thousands and thousands of years. She thinks you'll have a better time talking to the Lin Kuei, being Shaolin and all, rather than having Jax and those arms of his beat the pulp out of the Lin Kuei for being here illegally."

"Raiden?" Liu Kang inquired noticing that the guardian of Earth was deep in thought.

"A portal that can defy the gods would have to have been built before them," Raiden reasoned, "Or BY them... either way it may explain your strange experiences Liu Kang."

"Do you mean I might have received a message from beyond this portal?" Liu Kang asked but the question was self-answering.

"It was nice seeing you Liu," Johnny said with a smarmy smile, "now I'm gonna go hit up craft services, Lord knows there's nothing edible in this village, for movie stars, I mean, no offense. Stop by my trailer later, I'll give you the exact coordinates to the pyramid."

"If the gods find out what the Lin Kuei are doing it could lead to their destruction," Raiden theorized as Johnny wandered off, "Not to mention what will happen if the Earth authorities learn of it."

"Cyrax is just trying to return home," Liu Kang reasoned, "he is loyal to Earth-Realm but he is an Outworlder."

"If your experiences are any indication it isn't Outworld that this portal leads to," Raiden reminded, "Be careful Liu Kang."

"I'm coming with you!" Kung Lao demanded before Liu Kang could speak.

"Of course you are," Liu agreed, "You deserve an answer to these mysteries as much as I do."

"Be careful," Raiden repeated beginning to fade from sight, "Be safe."

* * *

Kano and the others were caught in the fury of a sudden stinging storm. Ice and snow blinded the, the cold wind cut almost as deep as the sting of sleet against their skin. The trail behind them was torn apart by the wind, their footsteps through the snow gone along with their chances of getting back to the ruin. With no other option the eight of them marched forward in the biting cold.

Even with the thermal optics on his eye piece and the general proximity of the village he'd seen Kano had managed to get the group lost. The only thing louder now than the howling wind were Jie Mai's constant insults and complaints delivered into Kano's ears through chattering teeth. How the Black Dragon warrior would have liked to put a fist through those teeth. It wouldn't be hard, he thought for a moment, to kill the bitch and leave her in the snow, claiming she had frozen to death in the storm.

Shadowy figures on the horizon broke his fantasy. His thermal sensors confirmed the heat signatures and the general outline. They appeared humanoid. With Earth-Realm stories of the abominable snowman burning in his brain Kano approached the figures. Soon enough he could make them out as soldiers of some kind, dressed in leather armor with thick fur boots. They were struggling desperately to set up a tent for shelter from the storm while their commanding officer, a short portly man who seemed to make up for his fat belly and short stature with massive muscular arms, shouted uselessly at them.

"They must be at war," Kano reasoned as the rest of the group got within visual range of the men.

"They're making an awful lot of noise for scouts in hostile territory," Jie Mai replied sarcastically, "It's more likely they're guards..."

Jie Mai led them forward despite Kano's complaints. He wasn't afraid of the guards, after all they had the element of surprise and were more than capable in a fight, but interacting with strange people in another realm seemed risky at any rate. Jie Mai was the first to speak, the soldiers seemed utterly taken by her strange appearance. Admittedly even for Kano the woman's appearance held some allure, but then Outworld women were somewhat exotic and strange to begin with.

"We're travelers," Jie Mai explained to the Captain, who identified himself by his last name, Erok, "We thought that perhaps you could point us in the direction of a settlement."

"Our city, Dawnstar, is only about a mile or so from here," Erok explained, "But in this weather we're not going anywhere. I suggest we combine camps and provisions Miss-"

"Mai," Jie Mai answered seeing no reason to lie, "I accept your offer graciously Captain. Tell me, are your people at war?"

"Goodness no," the Captain chuckled, "Hasn't been a war in Skyrim for more than a decade, we're a patrol, lot's of bandits around these parts... you folks must have traveled from a long way off."

"We've come very far indeed," Jie Mai replied gesturing for the group to assist the soldiers in setting up the tents. Working together they soon had a roaring fire keeping them warm and several tents set up. The fierce chill and ice drove them into those tents and kept them there for hours on end. Kano sat up and tended the fire with two of the guards at his side attempting to cook up some stew out of the rations they had with them. Kano's attention was more on the far tent, the Captains tent, where Captain Erok and Jie Mai were. He found himself wondering if the woman's wiles were what kept her beside Quan Chi. It seemed an unfair advantage for a woman to be both adept at the use of magic and at the manipulation of men.

"Needs more salt," one of the soldiers griped taking his first sip, "there's no flavor!"

"We don't have any more salt Frederick!" the other guard shouted.

"Maybe we don't, but they might!" He shouted back pointing to Kano.

Kano looked at the men each of them waiting for him to interject and provide an answer as to whether or not they did have any salt. Instead he simply fantasized about killing them and leaving their bodies in the snow. Finally Jie Mai emerged from the Captain's tent and approached. Kano stood to greet her happily helping her across to their tent and leaving the bickering soldiers to their tasteless meal.

"What have you learned?" Kano asked once they were safely inside the tent.

"A great deal," she answered, "The Captain was very helpful. As we suspected the territory we're in is called Skyrim, one of several provinces that make up an Empire. The Captain even gave me this map."

The young sorceress reached into her cloak and brought out a rolled up scroll. The map was fairly crude but luckily the Captain had been kind enough to mark their current location, just South of a city called Dawnstar. She explained that these guards called the city home and served as a protective patrol keeping the countryside clear of bandits, trolls and other dangers. When the conversation had turned to one about magic the Captain had seemed reluctant to talk. Apparently in recent years there had been several incidents regarding magic and talk of a dark cult of witches growing in the city of Winterhold.

"This is a world of sorcery and swordsman," Jie Mai concluded tucking the map away once Kano had gotten a good long look, "More than a century behind Outworld in technology and inhabited by strange monsters to be sure."

"Outworld has its share of those," Kano retorted, the man had learned that the hard way when he first called Outworld his home, "So what is our plan of action? Should we go back to Quan Chi with what we've learned?"

"The storm is already dying down," Jie Mai replied, "We will visit Dawnstar and learn more in the morning. For now we should get some rest."

"Where did you tell him we were from?" Kano asked with a curious grin and a yawn.

"I simply told him we were from elsewhere," she replied, "come to think of it he had an odd reaction to that, as if it were an actual place."

* * *

At last the end was in sight, the final few hundred feet of climb before them, thousands of stairs behind them. Telios dropped to his knees at the top of the stone stairs out of a combination of exhaustion and respect for the temple of High Hrothgar. The stone structure had stood for centuries, perhaps millennia but despite the howling cold winds here in the Throat of the World the structure showed little sign of weathering, a testament to the quality and true immortality of its architecture.

The Dragonborn took a deep breath and wore a troubled expression. It had been years since his last visit to the Greybeards and he hadn't parted on the best of terms with them. He stared into the emptiness of that dark stone door remembering the weeks he spent arguing with them, debating, and likely offending them. His allegiance to the Blades, the ancient dragon hunters who had helped him vanquish Alduin, the world eater, had left him torn. The Blades were at odds with the Greybeards over a great many things and despite his best efforts to exist between both worlds the Dragonborn had often been in conflict with both.

His courage mustered the orc lifted his hand and pressed forward feeling the weight of the stone door slide aside and the wafting of fire-warmed air steal the chill of the outside air. The out-chamber of the temple was empty save for two burning torches casting shadows on the stone. The orc looked behind him wondering if the elf would take his leave now but instead he found his former enemy wide-eyed with amazement at the sight of the temple.

"In all my travels," Telios muttered, "I have never seen anything like this... just LOOK at these carvings."

"Greetings," a deep and authoritative voice resounded.

"Arngeir!" The Dragonborn identified the old man, "You never age do you?"

"Please Dragonborn," Arngeir scolded, "Why have you brought this... guest... to our sacred temple?"

"He was... there with me when I heard the call," Hellok explained, "I have brought companions here before."

"Yes but, things are different now," Arngeir argued, "The world is at peace."

"Peace!?" The Dragonborn spat with an incredulous growl, "The Dominion even now encroaches more and more upon the rights of Skyrim's people, upon all of Tamriel! There are talks amongst my people of war against the Thalmor, of yet another rebellion and there are talks amongst the Thalmor of extermination, genocide of the Dunmer. And to make matters worse this PEACE is all my fault!"

"Thanks to you Alduin is no longer a threat," Arngeir calmly replied and that seemed to take the angry posture from the Dragonborn, "The political conflicts you speak of would not even be able to carry on, as they always have and always will, if the world's souls had been devoured."

"If the world is at peace, than why have you summoned me?" Hellok asked as Arngeir gestured for him to enter the conference hall.

"I am not sure we should reveal such knowledge, in front of your guest," Arngeir mentioned but the Dragonborn cast him an impatient look, "Very well, sit down please, _both_ of you."

The Dragonborn watched as the Greybeards shuffled into the room. He noted that along with the four he was familiar with were three new faces each a bit younger, though they all already had graying beards. When all were seated they began to chant. The Dragonborn recognized the words, dragon-tongue, he felt the air in the room change as they channeled the power of the Voice. Swirls of color appeared before the orc's eyes drawing shapes, the image of a ruin, dwarven in nature, danced before his eyes. He looked to Telios who, to his surprise, seemed just as capable of witnessing the display.

"This ruin lies to the North of Markarth," Arngeir explained, "We have felt strange energies coming from it. Another, near Dawnguard, has also appeared to us in visions. When we have used the Th'um we feel our voices extending far beyond their former reach."

"I don't understand," Telios said before the Dragonborn could.

"A portal that reaches beyond this realm," Arngeir elaborated, "An opening to a place we know not where but one which does not exist for us here on Mundus. We have talked with Paarthurnax and he has confirmed that their voices too can sense something amiss, the dragons he leads grow restless. They speak of a time long ago, of god-like beings who moved from realm to realm even against the will of the Eight Divines. Legends, of course Dragonborn, but as you know many legends have a bit of truth in them."

"You want me to find these portals to confirm their existence?"

"And close them, by any means necessary," Arngeir nodded as the chanting ended and the images disappeared.

"Close them? We don't know anything about them!" Telios complained, but he quickly grew sheepish and turned his eyes away from the Greybeards, "I'm sorry."

"The elf is right," the Dragonborn said patting Telios on the shoulder, "We must learn more, study this phenomenon for ourselves. Let us see who or what comes through the portal, or where it leads, before trying to close it."

"It may be Alduin," Arngeir mentioned wiping the smug expression from the Dragonborn's face, "You know as well as we do that dragons do not die the same as we mortal men and mer."

"If it is Alduin," the Dragonborn said with a deep breath to keep himself calm, "I will simply have to kill him again."

"Are you sure about this Johnny?" Liu asked as the three of them traversed the thickly overgrown jungle path as quickly as they could.

"They only have a few scenes left to shoot anyway," the movie star laughed, "Stuff my stunt double can handle easily."

"But won't they come looking for you?" Kung Lao asked swiping away at the tangled vines with his broadsword.

"You don't know much about Hollywood kid," Cage laughed, "No way in hell those stuck up executives or media hounds will come into this jungle, they hate getting their hands dirty... me on the other hand, well, you guys know I can hang."

"Plus once you do make it out of the jungle you can claim that you were lost, stranded, attacked and barely made it out alive. Imagine the publicity," Kung Lao joked.

"Hey, that's not half bad," Johnny replied stopping for a moment to imagine the possibilities, "Maybe I was wrong about you kid."

"Let's just concentrate on finding the Lin Kuei," Liu Kang suggested, "We can talk about fame and fortune later."

"Will you leave?" the Dragonborn asked finding the wood elf seated on the massive stone stairs leading the way down from High Hrothgar.

"I'm not sure," the elf replied honestly, "I do miss my village. At the same time this may be the greatest opportunity for adventure I've ever faced. Going off with the Dragonborn to delve into some Dwarven ruin... can I really pass that up?"

"It will be dangerous," the orc replied taking a seat beside him, "but I would like to have you there by my side. You make a far better friend than you did a foe elf."

"The feeling is mutual," Telios puffed, "But I have a life, my girl, Rena, she'll want to know what happened to me."

"I tell you what," Hellok said stretching, "I am going to visit Riften before I make my journey, I have to meet an old friend there and get some things he owes me, to make the journey easier. You have several thousand steps to make up your mind elf, that and the distance from the base of the mountain to the city of Riften. If you choose to come along I will meet you there, at the Bee and Barb Inn."

* * *

The Dragonborn gathered his things and started down the mountain. He wasn't sure if the elf would follow him to Riften or if he would stop at his home first but he was almost positive that the elf was going to come along. Suddenly the world seemed a bit brighter to him just by being back out on the road with a path of adventure set before him. No more sulking in a squalid cave while eking out an existence as a bandit. Still, a part of him did miss his companions and felt almost guilty for so quickly making amends with their killer. The elf had been misguided, filled with the angst, fire and fury of a younger man who had been cheated. What Telios had done had been in defense of those he cared for and his own livelihood but it still stung.

Even as the first mile was put behind him there was no sign of the Bosmer. Perhaps it didn't matter whether the elf came along, he thought to himself. What mattered was being out on the road with danger at every turn and a goal in mind. Besides, if his new friend opted out Hellok was sure that one of his old friends would take the bait. He looked down at his busted up iron armor and caught a glimpse of his own reflection in the somewhat dull steel of his sword.

"Will they even recognize me when they see me I wonder?" he asked aloud to himself.

"Drop the bitterness and self-pity elder orc," a voice replied and the Dragonborn smiled wide when he saw the elf approaching with his heavy warhammer laying casually over his shoulder, "It won't do if we're going to make this a proper adventure."


End file.
